34 Facts About Hage Geingob

Hage Gottfried Geingob was born on 3 August 1941 and is a Namibian politician, serving as the third president of Namibia since 21 March 2015.

Between 2008 and 2012 Hage Geingob served as Minister of Trade and Industry.

Hage Geingob is the current president of the ruling SWAPO Party since his election to the position in November 2017.

In November 2014, Hage Geingob was elected president of Namibia by an overwhelming margin.

In November 2017, Hage Geingob became the third president of SWAPO after winning by large margin at the party's 6th Congress.

Hage Geingob was born in Otjiwarongo, South West Africa, in 1941.

Hage Geingob received his early education at Otavi in South West Africa under the Bantu Education System.

Hage Geingob joined the Augustineum, where most of today's prominent political leaders of Namibia were educated, in 1958.

Hage Geingob was readmitted and finished the teacher-training course in 1961.

In 1964 Hage Geingob left for the United States to study at Temple University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where he was granted a scholarship.

Hage Geingob travelled extensively, criss-crossing the United States, talking with people, and addressing gatherings.

In 1972 Hage Geingob was appointed to the United Nations Secretariat as political affairs officer, a position he held until 1975, when he was appointed director of the United Nations Institute for Namibia.

Hage Geingob was director of the United Nations Institute for Namibia until 1989.

On 21 March 1990, Hage Geingob was sworn in as the first Prime Minister of the Republic of Namibia, and on 21 March 1995, he was sworn in for a second term.

Hage Geingob had placed ninth, with 368 votes, in the election to the central committee of SWAPO at the party's August 2002 congress, but on 15 September, he failed to be reelected to the SWAPO politburo; he received 33 votes from the 83-member central committee, while the lowest scoring successful candidate received 35 votes.

In 2003 Hage Geingob was invited to be Executive Secretary of the Global Coalition for Africa based in Washington, DC The Global Coalition for Africa is an intergovernmental forum that brings together top African policymakers and their partners in the international community to build consensus on Africa's priority development issues.

Hage Geingob's focus was to work with African continental and regional organizations and Africa's development partners toward conflict resolution in Africa, promotion of good governance in African states, and integration of African economies in the global economy.

Hage Geingob then left the Global Coalition for Africa and returned to Namibia to participate in the November 2004 parliamentary election, in which he won a seat.

Hage Geingob became the party Chief Whip of SWAPO in the National Assembly on 18 April 2007.

Hage Geingob was brought back into the SWAPO politburo in mid-2007, filling one of two vacancies.

At SWAPO's 2012 party congress, Hage Geingob was reelected as vice-president on 2 December, a result considered likely to make him the successor of Hifikepunye Pohamba as president of Namibia in 2015.

Hage Geingob received 312 votes from the delegates, while Jerry Ekandjo received 220 and Pendukeni Iivula-Ithana 64.

Hage Geingob was sworn in as president on 21 March 2015; the ceremony was attended by 15 regional Heads of State and Government.

Hage Geingob is the current chairperson of SADC after being elected to the position in 2018.

Hage Geingob is known to be a die-hard football fan and has attended many high-profile games.

Hage Geingob regularly attends the Namibia Annual Music Awards, and in his youth sang in a choir, and played in a band.

In 1967 Hage Geingob married Priscilla Charlene Cash, a New York City native; the couple had one daughter, Nangula Geingos-Dukes.

Hage Geingob later married Loini Kandume, a businesswoman, on 11 September 1993, in Windhoek, in a high-profile marriage which resulted in two children: a daughter and a son.

Hage Geingob initiated divorce proceedings against Kandume in May 2006, and he was granted a provisional divorce order in July 2008.

Hage Geingob's thesis was entitled "State Formation in Namibia: Promoting Democracy and Good Governance".

Hage Geingob examined the efforts of Namibians to build a reconciled society out of ethnically and racially stratified, diverse and often antagonistic groups, to promote democracy and a policy of reconciliation, to improve the life condition of the previously disadvantaged groups through affirmative action, to encourage good governance, to promote a culture of human rights, and to build state institutions to support these policies.

Hage Geingob was the chairman of the most comprehensive study ever undertaken on Namibia, Namibia: Perspectives for National Reconstruction and Development, which was undertaken by the United Nations Institute for Namibia in pursuance of the mandate given to it by the United Nations General Assembly.

Hage Geingob has travelled extensively covering all the continents and has attended, chaired, and presented papers at numerous UN and other international conferences.

Hage Geingob regularly attended the General Assembly sessions from 1965 to 1985.